After watching Beyonce perform “Formation” at the Super Bowl, two UCLA alumni said they felt empowered to create something that celebrated their South Asian culture.
YouTubers Krishna Kumar and Kausar Mohammed released “Namaste,” a video parody of Beyonce’s song and video “Formation,” in May in order to exaggerate and critique negative stereotypes and to increase the visibility of South Asians in the media.
“Her message, the music video and the lyrics to the song themselves just hit home,” Kumar said. “Despite me not being black, I still felt a relation to the struggle and to her experience as a person of color in the American society.”
In May, rapper Azealia Banks sent a tweet that called former One Direction band member Zayn Malik a “hairy curry scented bitch.” Banks’ message, which has since been deleted, provided Mohammed and Kumar with further inspiration to tweak “Formation” to their own culture.
“Namaste” borrows the tune and imagery from Beyonce’s original video while tailoring its content for South Asians. The lyrics of “Namaste” touch on topics from arranged marriages to strict parents demanding academic excellence to people expecting South Asians to sound like Apu from “The Simpsons.” The video depicts activities they said are commonly associated with South Asians, such as yoga, eyebrow threading and ethnic grocery stores.
Producer Kevin DeKimpe, who met Mohammed on another project and Kumar through a mutual friend, helped them shoot and produce “Namaste.”
“‘Formation’ is about black culture and minorities embracing minority, and I think Krishna and Kausar’s version does that for their culture,” DeKimpe said. “(‘Namaste’) not only blasts the stereotypes, it seems to own them too.”
They shot the video entirely on an iPhone in an effort to capture a more guerilla aesthetic, as opposed to some of the duo’s other more polished works made with professional software and equipment, Kumar said.
“We were experimenting with the shareability of something that looks very amateur and that anybody can do,” Kumar said.
Mohammed and Kumar stressed the importance of authenticity in the video and sought to capture their everyday experiences. For example, Mohammed said they chose to shoot in an Indian grocery story and eyebrow threading salon because those are locations she visits.
Their lyrics draw from the experiences and prejudice they have faced growing up in America, Mohammed and Kumar said. Lyrics discuss curry, being stopped in the airports by the TSA for their appearance and having Muslim names, Mohammed said.
The instance is reflected in the opening lyrics, “What happened at the TSA station?/ Bitch again? Thought this was random selection.”
Kumar considers comedy an art form and a language that can be used to highlight relevant social issues facing American culture. He views comedy as a weapon to tackle difficult political topics because people are more likely to listen to someone who can make them laugh and take the harshness that goes along with controversy, he said.
Mohammed, who has worked as an actor for BuzzFeed, said she and Kumar often have discussions about diversity in Hollywood.
They said one of the biggest obstacles South Asians face is their representation in the mass media through sanitized roles written by non-Asians, Mohammed said, and the stories of Asians’ accomplishments rewritten for white actors.
The issues may not be solely Hollywood’s fault but also stem from traditional Asian career expectations, Kumar said.
“A lot of Asian families are very ‘doctor or lawyer,’ and not a lot of Asian families will say, ‘Go be a writer or a creator,'” he said. “It’s a two-way development from the heritage side and the industry side.”
They hope “Namaste” will bring attention to South Asians and the negative stereotypes they face. Mohammed said she believes the fight for equality and diversity begins behind the scenes with the writers, directors and producers.
“We just need more role models and people behind the scenes to advocate for diversity,” Mohammed said. “But I have full faith in the kids growing up now seeing Priyanka Chopra, Aziz Ansari and Mindy Kaling on the big screen.”